In the wake of the school shooting in Florida, we've heard a lot about the warning signs shown by the shooter.
Could something have been done about it?
King County now has a new tool to help families restrict access to firearms for people in crisis - a new regional firearms enforcement unit.
On the fourth floor of the King County Courthouse is a new integrative community justice center called Ellie's Place, named after the county's first courthouse assistance dog.
Ellie's place houses a unit taking on an issue in the national spotlight - helping families get guns out of the hands of dangerous people.
"It allows people who have concerns about a loved one in their family or someone they go to school with who is doing things or saying things that make them think they pose an extreme risk to public safety," said King County Prosecutor Dan Satterberg. "Here in Washington, here in King County, here at Ellie's place, we're going to react to that."
The unit consists of prosecutors, police, and victim advocates making use of a 2016 state law that allows families to seek Extreme Risk Protection Orders or ERPOS.
"We're in a standstill in our country with being reactive," said program director Sandra Shanahan. "The ERPO and the work we're doing in our new unit is about being proactive in nature. So when someone has a concern about a firearm and they happen to be filing for a domestic violence protection order, we have a unit that can be dispatched that can help remove those firearms."
Shanahan said an ERPO gives worried families an option outside of filing a criminal complaint or looking the other way. The county's Regional Domestic Violence Firearms Enforcement unit acts as the infrastructure for enforcing the state law. It helps serve court orders, removes firearms based on those orders, and charging those who fail to comply or who possess firearms unlawfully.
The county provided more information about how to reach the Firearms Enforcement Unit:
- The first step is to email ERPO@kingcounty.gov where advocates and staff are available during business hours Monday to Friday to provide assistance, including referring callers to the appropriate law enforcement agency.
- Here is general information about ERPOs, and how to access free, legal resources.
- Here is additional information on how to apply for an ERPO .
